Let's share upcoming upgrade plans for the M15x beast :)

Yeah but dem pixels!

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Yeah true. I gotta scroll a lot more left and right while browsing the web with side by side windows. The lower res is easier on my eyes though, and my eyesight ain't what it used to be.

 

How about this one then?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Dell-Al...303945?hash=item2eeb9b1189:g:nhQAAOSwLnlWpmrC

 

In the description it says it includes the panel and mounting rails. It makes no mention if it's a complete assembly even thought the title says it's the complete assembly and the pics show the complete assembly. The listing is also confusing in that it states that the 1080p panel is included, but further up in the description it states that it's the 900p model. I'd contact the seller for clarification before ordering.

 

Ok, seller seems vauge.

How about this one? It clearly states the resolution and part number.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-NEW-Del...242499?hash=item3f55bac283:g:uVYAAOSwiLdV~Fpo



Dell LCD Screen P/N: C088T
LG Display LP156WF1 (TL)(B1)

 

I'd contact them and make sure they send you the FHD display. I say this because I ordered an FHD display from that seller back in November 2015 and they mistakenly sent me the HD+ display. I ended up keeping it and using it for my 2nd M15X that I was in the process of building from spare parts. They gave me a small discount for their mistake, but contact them and make sure that it is indeed the FHD panel they send. Other than that, the panel I got from them was brand new and in perfect condition, with the plastic screen cover still intact and packaged well in the original padded box these panels were shipped with from Dell. Again, the HD+ display is absolutely gorgeous and made by LG just like the 1080p panel. I ended up ordering an FHD panel from another seller later on and I am using that on my main M15X.

EDIT: I wanted to link for you the right FHD panel I ordered after I got the wrong panel, but that seller is "no longer a registered user" according to e-bay.

 

I contacted them and they said it's FHD display (same sticker on panel as partspeople)

I don't think that the HD+ display looks beautiful, it's average. I'll see on the 1080 though.

 

yay i'm told my R9 290x should be in tomorrow i'll let you know how it goes in my M15x so excited!!!!! my wife will have a killer card for her machine and i'll finally get my video card back for my m17x

 

Read from post #25+ regarding installing the R9-M290X.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/dell-m290x-in-m15x.788773/page-3

 

thanks for the heads up. I currently have 5730 in my machine if i have to steal the xbracket from that i will. I'll see how it goes from there. I'm really hoping to have this running in my machine by end of march break. I will definitely keep you guys updated

 

The x-bracket on the R9-m290x is wider, as in bigger square , on your 5730 x-bracket , the x-bracket is a smaller square. It won't work on the swap. fyi , don't damage the r9-m290x.

 

ok. thank you for the heads up. so I'll have to take my dremel to the mount posts to make it fit tightly. I can live with that I'll probably hunt down a spare xbracket so i don't **** this one up. I also have a spare nvidia xbracket if it lines up i may look a messing with that instead off fing up the r9 bracket but only if it is the same size. its from my old 260m that toasted

 

Use a metal file instead of a Dremel. The metal used for the x-brackets files down easily. With a Dremel, you run the risk of filing down too much. Use a Vernier caliper and measure the height of the 260M's x-bracket posts (should be round 3.5-4mm) and slowly file down the new x-brackets posts to reach that height. Use some low-grit sandpaper at the end to smooth out the surface and blow out any metal shavings that may be left inside the threaded screw posts. Make sure the black insulating material is not damaged. Also, I recommend doing the filing with the x-bracket removed from the card for obvious reasons. Heat up the double sided tape with a hair dryer and slowly and carefully pry it off. Do not use a high power heat gun or you run the risk of melting some solder points on the card.

No other Nvidia bracket will work properly. The holes will line up but the brackets have different shapes to route around components on the pcb. If you use the wrong bracket, the bracket will surely be pressing down on some components. The R9 uses a different bracket exclusive to AMD cards from the 6900/7900 series.

Btw, not sure if you know this but native fan control will not work with the R9 on the M15X. You're going to have to use HWinfo to control the fans.

 

thank you for the info. I'm planning to make the fan run at max most of the time to keep it running properly. I'm going to test it out in my aw 17 first tho and make sure the card works proper before i try it in the m15x. The guy i bought it from told me that he wasn't sure it worked cause his laptop died. probably does and for 200 cad with a money back guarantee i can say that I'm not going to complain about the extra work. its gonna be awesome if i can get my wifes system running nicely

 

is anyone else having problems getting display port on the M15x to work properly? I have a d port to hdmi adapter but still won't recognize external monitor

 

hey guys i didn't need to grind down the xbracket at all i had to change the screws i'm using hardrive screws that fit the thread and there is actually about 0.003" of clearance so the upper mount is pulled down tight. i'll let you guys know how things progress currently working on the swap

 

moment of truth and she doesn't turn on she lights up keyboard and all that but the caps num and scroll lights are all flashing together. hope i didn't brick this machine. pulling cmos battery for 10 min and i'll update

 

https://www.techinferno.com/index.php?/forums/topic/1019-alienware-m15x-m17x-led-error-codes/

Try re-seating the video card. You may want to re-seat the RAM too. Make sure the thermal paste is spreading well over the GPU die. If your original graphics card works fine, then it may be a problem with the new one. Also make sure you are on BIOS A09.

 

gg dead card

 

****ty well i'll test it in my main machine just to make sure. BTW anyone know if the r9290x will fit in my aw17 straight swap? I'm going from an 880m just to test it

 

King I wanted to ask where you got the 11.2 cfm fans?

 

Ebay

 

Last night I put all the parts in my Daughter-in-law's laptop. I turned it on and I got a green snowy screen where it should be black. It was doing this with the GT 240M that I had been overclocking the crap out of and I thought I had toasted the 240M. Reseating the video cable cured the problem. Maybe it wasn't fully seated... don't know.

So I got Win 8.1 on it last night and updated all the drivers. I noticed that it already has Geforce drivers installed. I ran 3D mark and it did about what I expected with the CPU/GPU at stock.

Here are the parts that were upgraded.

GTX 970M
i7-920XM
16GB RAM (up from 4GB)
Samsung 850 EVO 500GB
Intel 7260 AC Wireless
New Dell 150w power supply
New Dell palmrest

I still need to flash the GTX 970 with Prema's mod and install the drivers I want. Other than that it's ready to roll.

The new palmrest really freshens up the look of the laptop. This is a high wear component and highly recommend replacing it. Mine had the mounting points busted so it needed to be replaced. I got a used one for about half the price of new, but one of the threaded inserts was busted out on that one. At this point I just said screw it and bought a new one. I am not disappointed.

 

M15x upgrade factory! You should start a business selling after market M15x laptops.

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It's faster than my Sager even without the Prema vbios or using ThrottleStop. She should be pretty pleased.

Sent from my overpriced Galaxy S6 Edge +

 

Indeed! The M15x proves that to game a powerful gpu doesn't require a brand new cpu or ddr4 ram to run well.

The laptop is so great!

 

I am going to have to get another one to play with. Always wanted one and never could afford it. I am having a lot of fun making these old machines into formidable gaming systems. I looked up the service tag on the this one and it shipped in Feb of 2010. The thing is 6 years old and can be upgraded to kick some serious butt. I told me my son that the M15x was faster than my Sager and he was very impressed.

 

Why 150w? The PA-7E 210w is only 35~ usd on ebay.

 

Because 150w works perfectly well in this system. The CPU will be bumped up with Throttlestop. The GPU will be left at stock speeds. No need for the larger 210w.

Sent from my overpriced Galaxy S6 Edge +

 

210W will be a lot colder than 150W.

 

Colder???

Sent from my overpriced Galaxy S6 Edge +

 

Have to say I agree with Stihial. You'll be pushing the 150W right to the edge where it is less efficient, possibly shortening its lifespan. The 210W adapter uses higher quality delta components and is able to deliver up to 245W. It also runs cooler and can be modded for throttle-free gaming and left at home, with the 150w one used for on the go?

 

Finally yanked the center pin on my right angle adapter today. I was playing Crysis 3 and getting weird frame drops all over the place, even with textures set to medium. Yanked the pin and been running super smooth on high settings since.

 

Use the division if you really want to push the laptop.

 

Or Witcher 3 on high with high sharpening and light shafts!

 

anyone able to tell me if an r9 m290x from an aw17 (2013) will work in my aw17 of same gen using my nvidia gpu heatsink. I need to test it before I return it. I'm thinking it may be dead and that blows for upgrading my wife's M15x

 

I'm not familiar with those models, but I doubt Dell made different heatsinks for Nvidia and AMD cards. If they are MXM cards, the heatsink should be the same for a specific laptop. The only thing that may differ is placement of thermal gap fillers. You may want to check the AW17 subforum to make sure though.

EDIT: I was reading the following thread. Looks like Dell did indeed have different heatsinks. One was rated at 75W with two heatpipes and the other was rated at 100W with 3 heatpipes. They should both fit the R9, but the 100W model will be more efficient at cooling.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/alienware-17-100w-3-pin-gpu-heatsink.762480/page-2

 

Division pushes the CPU even further compared to witcher. Engine seems to take advantage of cpu multicore very well.

 

double post

 

I have the 100w 3 heat pipe. im planning to test the r9 tonight i'll be royally bummed if it is dead cause i got the card for 200 cad i get my money back but i woun't find a card that good for same price.

 

It is about time!! How long has quad core been around.......? Oh yeah q6600 is 10 years old

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well turns out people were right. the R9 M290x I bought was shot. I used it in my AW17 and it froze soon as i tried to run a game. Now to return this card and hope to find a new video card for relatively same price range

 

If you are still interested , you know i have a pair of R9-m290x running in tip top shape. Let me know.

 

I got the usb 3 expresscard replacement from china.

W10 detects the device automatically but I haven't allowed the OS to auto search for drivers or the such. It works with my mouse, but I'll be doing some read/write comparison on a usb3 stick soon.


@kosti @King of Interns - any need for drivers when using usb3 expresscard?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Express-Car...778647?hash=item58d40d8817:g:L1AAAOSwHaBWkMOv

 

I delivered the M15x to my daugher-in-law this past Saturday at her birthday party. She was thrilled!

But... the screen is actually pretty beat up. And the new battery is acting weird. So I have replacements for both of those parts on order from Parts People. They should be here early next week.

 

Yeah, I had to use the included drivers. There are a bunch of drivers on that cd, so just go into device manager, find the unknown device, and let windows search for drivers on the root of the cd. It will eventually find the right one.

 

Oh id be interested but considering i paid 200 cad for this one im sure they are worth a hell of a lot more. Please send me a private pm with how much you are asking so i can get things together financially

 

M290x used isn't worth more than 200 dollars IMHO. Otherwise you are getting in to 970M territory. 970M wipes floor with the M290X.

 

You can put the small cd in the m15x's slot load drive?

:O

 

Good question, not sure though and I don't have the optical drive installed to test. You'll probably need a tray loading optical drive (external) or try downloading from the Internet. If you have the 2 port card, it should have the Asmedia chipset. I can't find them on Asmedia's site but I found them on Softpedia.

http://drivers.softpedia.com/get/MOTHERBOARD/ASMedia/ASMedia-104x-USB-30-Driver-116120.shtml

Tried them and they work on mine which is also a 2 port card. I also have a 3 port card which uses a different chipset.